Today has been dubbed "Rubber Duckie Day", the actual date of January 13th that has been dedicated to the birthday of Rubber Duckie, Ernie's bathtub toy from Sesame Street. We have seen these cute tiny ducks from photos of some other cruises, but never on a trip we have been on. There was even a song sung by Jim Henson that reached # 16 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles in 1970. Our kids were born around that time, and we remember the song well. So we Googled this subject and learned all about the history of the creation which dated back to the 1800's. An interesting story was when boxes of these little rubber ducks were being shipped by sea from China, some of the boxes fell overboard, releasing thousands of tiny ducks in the ocean. Eventually, they ended up in many Pacific Rim countries. Reportedly, there are still 2000 missing.
We had no clue about where these tiny ducks would be hidden on the ship. Our job was to find some of them to either keep or hide for others to find. With a little help from our room steward, we did find a few hiding in the temperature cover near the center elevators. We never would have spotted them. Each duck was a different color and came with a note attached saying keep or hide….you decide. And please do not leave them in any of the Shops or hot tubs. Lastly, we were asked to post a photo of them on social media. Sure doesn't take much to amuse us.
We went back to the Pinnacle Grill for breakfast, mostly because we needed to ask Tina some questions. She gave us a complete list of all of the pop-up dinners with the dates, event, times, and cover charge. In the past, it was difficult to find the price of the events as they are all different. This was a great idea so now we can book our complimentary dinners on the regular evenings. The Canaletto has always been located in the Lido. But on this grand voyage, the Canaletto dinner has been moved to a pop-up evening in the Pinnacle Grill. This will only be for the duration of this world cruise, and the venue will return back to the Lido.
While taking a walk on the promenade deck, we had the luck of spotting several dolphins feeding near to the ship. Without warning, some of the pods began jumping high as can be.
It is pure luck to see this, and it happened throughout the day. Of course, several photos were taken. Maybe the rubber duckies brought us luck today. We also saw some gulls, terns, pelicans, and possibly a few albatross.
Then we had a surprise visit with Bart G., an officer we have known for many years. He is onboard not as an officer, but employed doing a special behind the scenes job for the company. His wife, Daphne, is the current customer relations manager, replacing Maja who has taken some time off to be with her young family.
The Captain came on with his noon talk with some unusual information. He explained a story about the sea water turned fresh water operation, which was interrupted due to shrimp clogging the filters. These waters are so prolific with sea life, it is no wonder that the dolphins thrive here. The technicians were able to deal with the situation, and the Captain added that the cooler sea water has helped keep the engines cooler. And due to this dilemma, the speed of the ship had to be reduced a bit. Currently, we are 249 nautical miles from Callao with relatively calm seas and low swell. The temperature outside remained at 70 degrees, but with some wind, it felt much colder. We have to remind ourselves to enjoy the coolness, because once we head south towards the South Pacific, it will heat up significantly.
There were three lectures today. Kimberly gave the Lima, Peru talk, and guest lecturer Rob Quintrell spoke about the attack on Pearl Harbor. Howard Krug lectured on the architectural marvels of the Incans. Kimberly's port talk should have been repeated on our TV, but there were problems with the techs, and it did not appear until dinnertime. This must have made a few guests angry since they depend on her talks to make plans for the days ahead. We will be spending 2 ½ days in Callao, probably giving the overland excursions time to return from Machu Picchu. We always like to know if there will be a shuttle to somewhere. Normally, we are bussed to Miraflores, a very nice part of Lima, but the last time we were here, we were brought to a mall nowhere near Miraflores. This is one place that you do not want to wander off of the ship in the port of Callao as it is far from safe.
The Lido lunch was better because the sandwich section was more organized. Glad we never complained to anyone and gave the crew time to adjust. The only disappointment is that the pizza section is open to anyone serving themselves. Up to now, the servers kept the slices behind glass where no one could touch them. Not so on this ship. That frees up the waiter to cook and serve the pasta dishes which share this station.
For dinner in the dining room, there were some new items such as potstickers and soto ayam soup. Both really good. One of us had the chicken cordon blu, while the other ordered the sliced tenderloin. The plate came with the sides belonging to a different entrée. Instead of potato slices, there was a square of polenta and a bunch of steamed spinach. Both of those items are not among our favorites. So when the Sous Chef strolled by and asked how we liked our meal, we informed him of the switch. He admitted that they had run out of the tenderloin sides and made substitutes. It would have been nice if they informed our waiters so we could order something to our liking. He agreed, but did not apologize. Now the strawberry shortcake (or something close to it) was good as was the mango sorbet.
Instead of a show tonight, there was The Grand Fair at 8 to 9:30pm in the Lido Poolside. It featured free admission to jovial Carnival games and contests to collect tickets for prizes. We have seen this event in the afternoon, but never at night. Not sure how many people will attend on a cool dark evening. Considering the average age of this group of passengers, we think not many will stay up that late to play games. But we may be wrong.
Bill & Mary Ann
